Hope

In a country where names like "Patience" and "Blessing" are common, I shouldn't be surprised to find Hope everywhere. A couple of weeks ago when we brought our puppy home, we asked our security guard, a 60+ year old man who seems very wise, what we should name the dog - without hesitation, he said "Hope". It somehow felt much deeper than a suggested name for a dog.

Tonight, Ghana played Egypt in the final for the Africa Cup of Nations. Going into the tournament a couple of weeks ago, Ghana's chances weren't looking so great. At least 5 of their top players were out with injuries. On the day of the first round game, I asked my driver how he thought the team would do. I was expecting some sort of smart remark about the injuries, but instead he said simply "they will do their best". As Ghana kept advancing, Ghanaian pride became more and more obvious - cars with flags, people wearing Black Star shirts, everyone talking about "the game". I, of course, was not going to miss this. I dropped the kids off at a Pirate Birthday party that was strategically timed for the duration of the game and I headed to the Guinness outdoor screen and stage that had been setup for the Africa Cup. I'm sure there were other Obrunis (white people) there, but I didn't see any. I just enjoyed being in the middle of true Ghanaian spirit. Everything I observed reinforced the feeling of hope....people being interviewed prior to the game said things like "no matter the consequence, Ghana is the winner". "Ghana will do its best, who wins does not matter." Easy enough to say before the game, but what about afterwards, when Ghana lost 1-0, Egypt making the only score of the game in the last five minutes? People were still proud. The announcer on the radio kept trying to make Ghana out to be the sad loser, making comments about "poor Ghana" and how "devastated" Ghana must be. But when fans were interviewed, they remained upbeat and the most typically Ghanaian comment I heard was "Hope is not lost.....we lost to a very good team and we played well. There is hope."
Yes, there is hope. And, yes, Ghana IS the winner.......

The Black Stars

Like much of Africa, football (aka soccer) is huge. The second night we were here, the kids each got Black Stars (Ghana national soccer team) jerseys. Today, the kids and I went to a Black Stars game vs. Sudan. It was an early qualifier for the 2010 World Cup. I have to admit, if a similar game had been in Seattle, I probably wouldn't have attended, but this seemed like too good a "cultural experience" to pass up. The VIP tickets were sold out, so we got 4cedi (about $2.50) cheap seats. We were in row Q (the stadium goes up to Z) and had a birds' eye view. The evening was warm & slightly breezy - perfect! We quickly learned that the seat # on your ticket doesn't have anything to do with where you sit. We crammed into a row & waited for kick-off. We had a GREAT time. I must say that Ghanaians are probably the most "civil" football fans on the planet. I was fully prepared for pandemonium & even wrote my cell phone # in permanent pen on the kids' bodies in case we got separated! However, people were enthusiastic, but polite & Ghanaian spirit was huge.

Ghana won 2-0 against Sudan. Someone mentioned to us that because of Darfur, Sudan needs to hope of winning, but we still had to cheer on Ghana. It felt amazing to be in a stadium with thousands of Ghanaians, cheering on our new little country & seeing a "real" football match.